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Writer's block is something that I've written about before, but no list of writing tips is complete without addressing it.
Personally, I wouldn't go so far as to say that writer's block doesn't exist. But I do think that it is not a mystical, uncontrollable force. It can be overcome. It can be beaten.
There are two main reasons why writer's block happens, at least in my experience.
1. When something has gone awry in the story.
2. Negative self-talk - aka, the Inner Editor has struck.
If the problem is the first, then it's caused by your subconscious. You know that something is going off, that perhaps there's a big plot hole that you've created, or you know on some level that you're painting yourself into the corner.
I've been affected by this many times. Sometimes it takes me a day to get through the problem, sometimes longer. The main way to avoid it is to recognize it when it's happening, and then to go back through the most recent developments in a draft, to see where things are going wrong. I usually have to back up a few steps and move things in a different direction.
On the other hand, if the Inner Editor has convinced you that writing is far too difficult to move on with and it's best to just catch up on Game of Thrones, then it's you're stuck in a far more difficult situation. It's not writer's block - it's negative self-talk. The only way to beat it is with positive reinforcement.
Write a little, even if it's hard. Tell yourself that writing is fun, that it doesn't matter even if the writing is bad - that you can always fix it later. Tell yourself whatever it takes, but write something. Even if it seems terrible, it's better than nothing.
The best way to beat writer's block, is to write.
Personally, I wouldn't go so far as to say that writer's block doesn't exist. But I do think that it is not a mystical, uncontrollable force. It can be overcome. It can be beaten.
There are two main reasons why writer's block happens, at least in my experience.
1. When something has gone awry in the story.
2. Negative self-talk - aka, the Inner Editor has struck.
If the problem is the first, then it's caused by your subconscious. You know that something is going off, that perhaps there's a big plot hole that you've created, or you know on some level that you're painting yourself into the corner.
I've been affected by this many times. Sometimes it takes me a day to get through the problem, sometimes longer. The main way to avoid it is to recognize it when it's happening, and then to go back through the most recent developments in a draft, to see where things are going wrong. I usually have to back up a few steps and move things in a different direction.
On the other hand, if the Inner Editor has convinced you that writing is far too difficult to move on with and it's best to just catch up on Game of Thrones, then it's you're stuck in a far more difficult situation. It's not writer's block - it's negative self-talk. The only way to beat it is with positive reinforcement.
Write a little, even if it's hard. Tell yourself that writing is fun, that it doesn't matter even if the writing is bad - that you can always fix it later. Tell yourself whatever it takes, but write something. Even if it seems terrible, it's better than nothing.
The best way to beat writer's block, is to write.
